by Kathy Smith, MSPA, CCC-SLP/L (Speech-Language Pathologist, retired); NWACS Vice President

AAC Spotlight is a series of interviews that we hope will be another resource. NWACS occasionally interviews people to help all of us learn more about each other and AAC.

In the Spotlight: Lauren S. Enders, MA, CCC-SLP

As our 2019 NWACS Annual Conference nears, we are delighted to shine the AAC Spotlight on this year's conference speaker, Lauren Enders! Lauren is a licensed and ASHA certified Speech-­Language Pathologist currently working as a full­-time Augmentative and Alternative Communication and Assistive Technology Consultant. She has had a passion for using AAC and other forms of assistive technology to support students with complex communication needs and complex bodies since she began her career in 1995. Lauren presents regularly at national conferences including Closing the Gap, ATIA, and ASHA as well as more intimate conferences, speaking engagements and webinars. She has shared her knowledge via blog posts on Praacticalaac.org as well as articles published in ASHA Leader and Closing the Gap Solutions Magazines. Lauren enjoys sharing AAC and AT related resources and networking with others in the field via her professional social media accounts on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

How did you get interested in AAC?

I became interested in AAC while completing my graduate work at the University of Pittsburgh in the early 90s. Before starting grad school, I thought that I wanted to work with adults with acquired language disorders. Both of my parents were teachers and I recall stating that I did NOT want to work with children. Fortunately, I had clinical placements in a variety of different settings which gave me experience with both adults and children. I quickly discovered that I walked away super excited and energized after working with children with physical disabilities who needed assistive technology to communicate and access the curriculum. At one of my school practicums, I was lucky enough to work with children using all kinds of AAC systems including high tech systems from Prentke Romich and DynaVox. I was hooked! I began working with kids with disabilities at my very first job in 1995 and still do today.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

Two of the things that excite me most are solving problems and helping others. I get to do both in my role as a school based AAC consultant! I love that I am able to work directly with teachers, school staff, families and students. I get the opportunity to meet with each team and to listen to the hopes and challenges they share as they work to support their AAC learner. It’s incredibly rewarding to be able to calm fears and frustrations, give teams the tools to help their child, and support them throughout the learning process. Serving multiple school districts allows me to work with a variety of learners and teams and always keeps things fresh and new!

What is one of your most fond AAC experiences or memories?

I have lots of fond AAC memories, but my most memorable AAC experience so far happened about 10 years ago. I was called in to help 11-year-old twins residing at a residential facility for children with the most complex medical needs. The girls had Spinal Muscle Atrophy and were essentially “locked in”. They had never had a robust communication system. My consultation with the girls’ team happened right when eye gaze access was beginning to get much more accurate and I was able to get each of the girls eye gaze systems. Watching them learn to communicate and access to their environment was incredibly impactful and quite emotional! I was never so happy to see a child change the channel and talk about Hannah Montana!

What is your present involvement in AAC?

My involvement is twofold. I have a full-time job working as an AAC consultant for Bucks County Intermediate Unit in Bucks County, PA. We support the 13 school districts in our county who can contract for specialized services including assistive technology support. I am responsible for supporting the AAC needs of 5 of those 13 school districts. The second part of my AAC life began in around 2011, when I created a large Pinterest page sharing AAC, AT, and instructional technology resources. I now maintain professional social media sites including my Pinterest site, professional Facebook page and Twitter account. After launching my Pinterest page, I discovered quickly that there is a huge need for quality resources and training in the area of AAC. I learned that social media is an incredibly powerful vehicle for not only sharing resources, but networking and advancing my own learning. My social media presence has allowed me to meet amazing colleagues in the field as well as travel and present at conferences about AAC implementation. I believe my strength is being a curator or ‘sharer’ of resources, so I am driven to continue sharing daily!  

What is your future plan as an SLP working in the area of AAC?

I plan to continue working in the schools, sharing on social media, and presenting as much as I can until my retirement from the schools. After I retire, I plan to continue presenting and stay very active in the AAC community on social media.

In a dream world, what would you like to see changed in the area of AAC/AT?

I think one of the greatest challenges we face in the field of AAC is the lack of knowledge in implementing AAC. Most therapists and special educators get some training (maybe one or two classes) focusing what AAC is and what kinds of AAC systems exist, but do not receive training on HOW to teach those with complex communication to communicate using these systems! Unfortunately, this lack of preparation and support directly and negatively impacts so many AAC users who never develop effective language skills. In my dream world, every SLP and special educator would receive specific training in their undergraduate and graduate programs on typical language development and how to use that knowledge to teach language to those learning to communicate via AAC.

What is the greatest challenge for users of AAC?

My response here fits right in with my answer to the last question. There are simply not enough communication partners who are adequately trained to help those who use AAC become competent communicators. More and more individuals are getting devices but fail to become competent users. We not only need far better educational preparation; we also need to provide far better support to families. I think it’s crucial that we teach best practices to all communication partners. We’re fortunate now to have several excellent coaching protocols that can be used for this purpose including Dr. Jill Senner and Matt Baud’s Partner Augmented Input protocol, Gail Van Tatenhove’s Power:AAC, and Tabi Jones-Wohleber’s MASTER PAL training.

My keynote topic for this year’s AAC in the Cloud Conference was “Connection: The Heart of Communication”. I spoke about the fact that we all connect with others and we do that through communication. Without the proper support, AAC users cannot develop the language skills that will allow them to connect with people in their lives. I am hopeful that in the future, we will be able to provide all AAC users with the tools and experiences that allow them to make meaningful connections with those around them.

Thank you, Lauren, for taking a moment to participate in our AAC Spotlight series! We look forward to learning from you in person at NWACS2019.

You can read more interviews HERE.

Do you have a suggestion of someone you would like to see us interview for AAC Spotlight? Let us know in a comment below or send us an email.